


How he did it

by bookl0ver



Category: EastEnders (TV)
Genre: Don't copy to another site, Episode Related, Kidnapping, M/M, Missing Scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-24
Updated: 2020-07-24
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:15:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25489084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bookl0ver/pseuds/bookl0ver
Summary: Just how did Keanu manage to get Callum out of the flat and into the warehouse? With a great deal of difficulty.
Relationships: Callum "Halfway" Highway/Ben Mitchell
Comments: 10
Kudos: 22





	How he did it

**Author's Note:**

> I saw a lot of people talking about how the show skipped over just how Keanu managed to move Callum around with no one seeing them, and decided to write my own interpretation. 
> 
> Warnings: Kidnapping, tying someone up
> 
> Enjoy!

Keanu grunted as he dragged Callum through the flat. Fuck, he should’ve thought about how heavy he’d be. In his defence, he didn’t realise Callum, with his flat stomach and Bambi-like gait would weigh so much. The relatively compact flat felt like it was over a mile long as he dragged Callum by his arms, wincing every time he accidentally bumped his head against something. 

“Fuck,” He panted as he pulled Callum through the door of the emergency exit, looking down at the stairs with trepidation. If he wasn’t careful he could potentially seriously injure Callum, and that wasn’t what he wanted. He was already gonna wake up with one hell of a headache at minimum, another good bang to the head might finish him off, and a dead boyfriend wouldn’t give Ben much motivation to try and pay a ransom. Tightening his grip on Callum’s arms, he pulled him up, head lolling limply against Keanu's stomach, and made a slow, cautious descent. 

By the time he had made it into the – thankfully abandoned – carpark, Keanu was panting and covered with sweat. He ached to take off his thick coat and baseball cap but he didn’t dare risk it for even a second. Dropping Callum, he fumbled for his keys and unlocked the car. 

Fuck, he was regretting deciding on this stupid plan. He should’ve taken anyone else, Lexi would have been easy, she’d have come willingly with Uncle Keanu. Jay was so skinny he probably weighed nothing, would have been like carrying a feather. Even Lola, for all the feisty kicking and screaming she surely would have put up the second she saw him, would have been so much easier. His shoulders ached and his heart pounded, exertion and anxiety coiling unpleasantly in his gut. 

A swig of water from the bottle in his front seat easing his parched throat, he turned back to Callum, lying unconscious next to the car. He was going to have to lift him. 

Well, he mused as he tried to work out how to do this quickly and with the least amount of damage inflicted on him or Callum, no one had ever said he was smart. For good reason, clearly. 

The bruise beginning to blossom on Callum’s cheek made him feel bad. Callum was a good bloke, a nice guy, and he didn’t want to hurt him, not really. But this wasn’t about Callum, it was about Ben. Once he’d explained to him why he was doing this he would understand. And, hopefully, Ben would come through with the money, and he’d be able to let Callum go. The thought of having to kill him made him feel sick, but it’s what Ben deserved. 

He had to keep reminding himself of that. This was beyond him, beyond Callum, nothing personal between them. No, this was about making the Mitchell’s, Ben Mitchell, pay. 

Keeping that thought running through his head he stooped low and grabbed under Callum’s arms again. Fuck, when Martin let him go he should have grabbed some dumbbells or something, or maybe practised kidnapping someone. Groaning he hefted Callum up, finally managing to manoeuvre his upper body into the boot, the effort making more sweat bead at his temples. Once he was sure Callum wouldn’t fall out he grabbed his legs – how bloody tall was he anyway? His legs were huge – and shoved them up into the boot as well. He had to fold him up slightly, bending his knees and tucking his body into a ball so he’d fit. 

Hand resting on the lid of the boot he stared down at Callum. Unconscious, bruised, and cramped into a tiny car boot. Satisfied that Ben Mitchell was going to understand exactly what it felt like to lose everything, he slammed the lid shut, ignoring the guilt bubbling in his stomach. 

He’d thought actually kidnapping Callum – a fully trained soldier and big bloke – would be the hardest part of this. Actually, the hardest part was dragging him to the spot in the warehouse he’d found. The warehouse was dirty and dusty, and by the time he’d gotten Callum to the bottom of the stairs leading up to where he planned to keep him they were both covered in grime. A grimace twisted his features and he hoped Ben would get the money soon, because he did not want to spend too long in this place. 

The grimace intensified as he looked from Callum to the stairs. Getting Callum down the stairs at his flat had been a struggle, getting him _up_ a flight of stairs was going to be infinitely harder. 

Ten agonising minutes later Keanu finally had Callum positioned against the wall, sweat covering his body and face red. He’d tried several methods of getting his captive up the stairs safely – he really did not want to hurt Callum, both because he wanted to save that for if Ben needed some extra motivation and to avoid the risk of him dying prematurely – and found most too difficult to contend with. 

First, he’d attempted a fireman’s lift, slinging Callum’s unconscious form over his shoulder. That had worked for all of a few seconds, before the dead weight of Callum had been too much, making Keanu bend. He’d managed a single step and then had to put Callum down. Then he tried to drag Callum up the way he had through the warehouse, hands digging into his armpits and found the steps too steep for him to climb backwards whilst bending down to pull Callum along. Finally he found an awkward method, stooping down to grab the back of Callum’s suit jacket he'd been able to climb the stairs, letting Callum’s stomach and lower body bash against the steps, wincing and hurrying when pained noises began escaping him. 

Pulling his backpack off he knelt on the ground, ropes in his hands. He stared at Callum momentarily, shaking his head sadly before getting on with it. He wound the rope around Callum’s limp wrists, pulling them tight and knotting them. From first-hand experience he knew how uncomfortable having your hands bound behind your back was, and he figured he’d be there enough to keep an eye on Callum, to eliminate any thoughts of escape. Then he wrapped the chains over his wrists, looping them over the rope. Callum would have some range of movement but not a lot, not enough to get away. 

There was more rope in his bag, he didn’t know how much was needed to effectively restrain a grown man. Callum’s long legs were stretched out, and Keanu didn’t doubt for a second that if Callum made it to his feet he’d be able to take him, even with his wrists bound and chained. Sighing, he took more rope and worked it around Callum’s ankles, pulling it taut and tying off the knot. 

This next part was what he felt most guilty about. Waking up with a gag over your mouth, disoriented and suddenly not able to breathe properly was a truly horrific experience. Still, it was needed. Very rarely did anyone venture to the abandoned industrial estate but someone might, and Callum screaming for help would fuck everything up. So he grabbed the cloth, kneeling over Callum as he did so, and tied it tightly over his mouth, securing Callum’s silence. 

Back on his feet he observed his captive, tamping down his guilt and allowing thoughts of Ben and the pain he deserved to fill him, the anger associated with him replacing the guilt. With a sad shake of his head he pulled Callum slightly, propping him up in a sitting position against the wall. Double checking all of the man’s bonds he nodded in grim satisfaction when he found them to be tight, the skin of Callum’s wrists already turning slightly red from the pressure of the ropes, he headed to the stairs. After all, Ben wasn’t going to pay a ransom when he didn’t know his precious boyfriend was even missing. 

“I am sorry, Callum,” He said, turning to look at the unconscious figure of sweet, kind Callum Highway bound and gagged in a dirty warehouse. “But this is what happens when you get involved with the Mitchells.” 

With that he headed down the stairs, making his way back to Albert Square to await Ben at Callum’s flat, leaving Callum tied up and alone.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, please feel free to let me know what you thought, comments and kudos are always welcome!! 
> 
> Have a great day!


End file.
